Hypnotherapy and NLP

​What is hypnosis?

Hypnosis is a natural state of relaxation that we experience many times each day. It is often likened to daydreaming where the conscious mind switches off from whatever it’s doing. Perhaps you can remember an occasions when you have been reading a book and find yourself having to go back and reread the page because you have forgotten what you’ve just read; or maybe there’s been a time when you’ve driven somewhere and yet afterwards you don’t remember part of the journey, like you’ve been on autopilot. This is because you were probably in a trance state at that time.

Clinical hypnosis and hypnotherapy is the use of hypnosis states to bring about positive changes in peoples lives by using indirect and direct suggestions along with other hypnotic techniques.

"Problems cannot be solved by the samelevel of thinking that created them."​ - Albert Einstein

Is hypnosis safe?​Yes, hypnosis is a safe relaxing process. You cannot be made to do anything against your will and the unconscious mind will not accept any suggestion that is not right for you or in your best interest. All hypnosis is self-hypnosis - it is your choice to allow yourself to deeply relax, to use your imagination, to make the changes and do the work to bring about your desired results. The solutions come from within, hypnosis allows your imagination to access your untapped resources to inspire change and to discover solutions that are right for you. A therapist merely guides you through the process, the work is done at an unconscious level by the client.

Can anyone be hypnotised?

Yes, as long as they are willing to be hypnotised. ​How does hypnosis help?

Hypnosis works by bypassing the conscious mind and communicating directly with the unconscious mind, allowing it to come up with alternative solutions to problems. When you are in a hypnotic trance the unconscious mind is more open to suggestions and is less likely to be distracted by the conscious thinking mind. There are different levels of trance states, some lighter and others deeper. Both are equally effective for making changes. Depending on your level of trance you may be able to remember all of what is said to you, or very little.

​​What’s the difference between the Conscious and the Unconscious mind?

The conscious mind is the thinking mind that deals with logic and reasoning and all things that you do consciously. The unconscious mind (also referred to as the subconscious) communicates with all the body’s systems at any given time, dealing with all autonomic functions (such as circulation, breathing, digestion, neurological functions, immune responses) and dealing with the body’s functioning. It iswhere memories and habit are stored and where our behaviours come from. The unconscious is responsible for our fight, flight, freeze response, is the home of our emotions and is responsible for our automatic learnt behaviours. Its primary function is survival and keeping you safe. The conscious mind can keep track of approximately 7 pieces of information, in contrast the unconscious deals with millions of pieces of information at any given moment!

"We cannot teach people anything, we can onlyhelp them discover it within themselves."- Galileo Galilei

​​What is NLP?

Neuro Linguistic Programming orNLP is probably best described as being like ‘a users guide to the brain’ and relates to how people think and use their brain. It was developed in the 1970s by Richard Bandler and John Grinder. Their work involved studying and modelling experts in the field of therapy, Dr Milton Erickson (Hypnotherapy), Virginia Satir (Psychotherapist) and Fritz Perls (Gestalt Therapist).Neuro - relates to the brain and how we think. Linguistic - relates to language, the words we use and how we say them. Programming - relates to our behavioural patterns and actions.

How is NLP used in therapy and healing?

NLP has many different uses within the therapeutic context; for example, it can be used to challenge and change both conscious and unconscious beliefs that people have - these may be about themselves, a particular situation or an illness. As Richard Bandler says, when people change the way they think, they change the way they feel and this in turn changes what they can do.